“Yeah, I’ve looked at the list and it’s pretty cool,” said the Edmonton Oil Kings winger who was the first pick in the 2018 bantam draft.

He hasn’t had any bumps along the road, with 59 points in 58 games this season, including a team-high 26 goals. All while still 16 years old.

Guenther, who only turned 17 on April 10, is the first-ever Oil Kings player to be top rookie. He beat Kamloops Blazers centre Logan Stankoven, who had 48 points (29 goals) in 59 games.

Advertisement

Story continues below

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content continued

“I actually didn’t know I was the first Oil King coming in, but looking at their past rosters and seeing players who’ve turned out to be great NHL players, I’m honoured and grateful for that,” he said.

Guenther played on the Oil Kings top line with the graduated centre Riley Sawchuk and left-winger Jake Neighbours, who’ll go in the first or second round of the 2020 draft. He had 14 multi-point games and his first WHL hat-trick against the Winnipeg Ice. He’s eligible for the 2021 draft.

“He’s very gifted, he makes it look easy. He’ll be on the top-10 picks for sure next year,” said draft guru Craig Button, who figures the six-foot-one, 170-pound Guenther has only scratched the surface. He could be the fourth forward to go after Finnish centre Aatu Raby, Swedish winger Fabian Lysell and Peterborough centre Mason McTavish.

Advertisement

Story continues below

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content continued

“It’s obviously in the back of my mind but I haven’t really looked at it a whole lot,” said Guenther, who certainly knows Neighbours has been watched constantly this year, however, by NHL scouts. “The draft has never been my focus, even in bantam, I just wanted to focus on playing to the best of my ability and hoping things fall into place.”

One play in his rookie season epitomized Guenther’s skill level, a short-handed set up to defenceman Wyatt McLeod. He stole the puck off Lethbridge’s Dylan Cozens, Buffalo’s first-round pick and also a former WHL rookie of the year, raced away and with Cozens draped all over him, shielded the puck and slid it over to the defenceman McLeod for a dazzling goal at Rogers Place.

Advertisement

Story continues below

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content continued

Guenther was never overwhelmed in his first WHL season.

“It was a change starting off, the players are bigger, stronger and faster and adjusting to that was a big difference but I didn’t feel out of place at any time. I felt I belonged there,” said Guenther, who has always been blessed to be one of the best players on his teams. “I don’t think I’ve ever been cut from a team before. Starting out this season, I was on the fourth line and I had never been put in that position before and it was a learning experience for me. I’m glad it went through that.”

Sawchuk and Neighbours were fine role models for Guenther.

Advertisement

Story continues below

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content continued

“They helped me a ton, good feedback, always positive. They helped me through playing in the league as a 16-year-old. Sawchuk was a young player once and Jake was in the league at 16 too,” said the Edmonton-born Guenther, who might have felt differently if he was 155 pounds going up against 19-year-olds. But he’s not.

“I’ve always been driven, going into corners to get pucks.”

Stankoven, smaller at five-foot-seven and 165 pounds, will likely be a first-round pick in 2021, too.

“I have a ton of respect for him. I’ve played a lot of spring hockey against Logan. This could have gone either way,” said Guenther, who is trying to stay in shape with the cancellation of the WHL season and itching to get back on the ice for a second year.

Advertisement

Story continues below

This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below.

Article content continued

“I’m roller-blading three or four times a week,” he said. “I’ve never been off the ice this long, a huge change for me.”

This ’n’ that: The hugely-underrated Ales Hemsky, who officially retired Friday, is eighth in career Oilers points and the first five — Wayne Gretzky, Jari Kurri, Mark Messier, Glenn Anderson and Paul Coffey — are in the Hall of Fame. Ryan Smyth and Doug Weight are sixth and seventh. Coffey set the bar as smooth, eat-up-the-ice skaters go, but Hemsky is easily in the top-five Oilers skaters of all-time. One hard-to-believe stat: In Hemsky’s rookie Oilers season, he was a healthy scratch 23 times … Oil Kings coach Brad Lauer, the WHL”s top bench boss, is up for the Brian Kilrea CHL coach of the year award against Ottawa 67s Andre Tourigny and Sherbrooke Phoenix Stephane Julien.

Share this article in your social network

Share this Story: Oil Kings’ Dylan Guenther in rare company as WHL's top rookie

Trending

Related Stories

This Week in Flyers

Article Comments

Comments

Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. We ask you to keep your comments relevant and respectful. We have enabled email notifications—you will now receive an email if you receive a reply to your comment, there is an update to a comment thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings.

Notice for the Postmedia Network

This website uses cookies to personalize your content (including ads), and allows us to analyze our traffic. Read more about cookies here. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.